Once again, sorry for the lack of post in recent weeks. I took a much needed sabbatical, even from reading. A very good friend of mine was visiting all the way from Hawaii so I spent most of my time running around, getting up to no good, with her. Now that she’s gone back home and I’ve gone back to work life is getting back to normal. Which means, the project must go on!

Here goes! I’ve read part 1 of Gulliver’s Travels in which Gulliver gets shipwrecked on the shores of Lilliput. I think, satirical allegory that it is, Gulliver’s time in Lilliput was very interesting. And I actually quite liked the story, although much of it is Gulliver describing his time there and there was not much dialogue. So on that front, so far so good. I’ll go into more detail when I review the work in it’s entirety.

Sherlock Holmes is AWESOME! Can I just say that again? He is awesome! I love Holmes and Watson so much, and I can see why there is such a legacy that continues to inspire people in every generation. I haven’t finished all of the Sherlock stories yet, there are just so many and I kind of enjoy savoring them rather than tearing through them voraciously. When I do finish them there will be a great big mushy gushy post, probably mostly lamenting the fact that they are over and lavishing praises on every little bit.

On to Madame Bovary. On the MB front I am about a third of the way through the book. I can’t really say yet whether I like it or not, at this point I have rather ambiguous feelings on the book. Let’s start by saying, for those of you who don’t know, apparently Flaubert was a misogynistic recluse as is so graciously (or not) pointed out by the woman who wrote the forward in the edition that I’m reading, Robin Morgan. Ms. Morgan is a self-identified feminist and while there is nothing wrong with that at all, I can’t really understand why anyone would ask her to write the forward for the book. At least not if they want anyone to buy it and read it. Most of the forward was spent telling the reader why Flaubert was a terrible person, why his work was irrelevant, and why an injustice was committed in the writing of it to Emma Bovary (the main character). Morgan states (paraphrasing here) that Emma is an inaccurate portrait of a woman and her life. Granted I haven’t finished the book yet, but so far I beg to differ in a big way. Many of the things Flaubert describes Emma feeling are things I’ve felt myself. If I can say anything about the story so far it’s that there is something uncanny about the way Flaubert captures universal emotions in prose, and to what an extent! As with the the others a full review will be following soon.

I welcome feedback from you guys as always, and suggestions for The Hat. Stay tuned for Storytime book reviews to come later today, and keep reading people!